New Battery Charges Energy Storage Industry

According to USA Today, a new type of sodium-sulfur-based (NaS) battery is looking to revolutionize the world of power storage. These batteries have a life span of about 15 years and take up only a fraction of the space used by traditional lead-acid batteries. They require no outside fuel source and do not pollute.

These perks are encouraging power companies to use NaS batteries to reduce the need to build new power plants and transmission lines. For example, American Electric Power (AEP) currently is using a NaS battery to supply power to 10 percent of its customers around Charlestown, W.Va. AEP estimates the battery, which was bought for about $2.5 million, has allowed them to push back approximately $10 million worth of upgrades to their power grid for another seven years.

Not only do these batteries cut down on costly expansions, they also provide backup power during an outage. NaS batteries also could facilitate wind-generated power production. EC